• Sky Watch: The year begins brilliantly, with all five naked-eye planets prominent. Mercury pops out of the Sun's glare around the 14th to linger low in the southwest, and hovers near Uranus on the 22nd. Mars is an orange medium-bright "star" between Virgo and Libra, rising about 2:00 a.m. and climbing well up by dawn. Dazzling Jupiter and bright Saturn keep close company in Taurus; both are high at dusk and prominent most of the night. Venus, spectacular in the west at nightfall, reaches its greatest angular separation from the Sun (47 degrees) on the 17th. Earth is at perihelion (closest to the Sun) on the 4th. The end of a total lunar eclipse on the 9th is visible in northeastern North America.
• Listen for singing white-throated sparrows (which have a song that sounds like "Sam Peabody....Peabody.....Peabody.....Peabody").
• Watch for winter transients/irruptive finch family members (purple finches, common redpolls, pine siskins) that may visit backyard thistle feeders as visitors from the north (where spruce and pine seed mast may be low this winter).

• 9^th: Full Moon is called the Old Moon or Moon After Yule. Total eclipse of the Moon, January 9. The beginning of the umbral phase will be visible in northern Canada and most of Alaska. The end will be visible in northeastern North America. The Moon enters penumbra at 12:44 p.m. EST (9:44 a.m. PST); the umbral phase begins at 1:42 p.m. EST (10:42 a.m. PST); totality begins at 2:50 p.m. EST (11:50 a.m. PST) and ends at 3:52 p.m. EST (12:52 p.m. PST); the umbral phase ends at 4:59 p.m. EST (1:59 p.m. PST); the Moon leaves penumbra at 5:58 p.m. EST (2:58 p.m. PST).
• Watch for dazzling yellow blossoms of late-flowering witch hazel shrubs that may still be seen and brighten muted, monochromatic forest landscapes.
• Notice red oak and American beech leaves that persist throughout the winter.

• Listen for the uneven, interrupted hooting call of great-horned owls, many of which have already nested and laid or hatched eggs.
• Which three thrushes are you most likely to see now? American robins, eastern bluebirds, and, yes, hermit thrushes.

• Coax deer into view by placing a salt lick block at the edge of woods.
• Watch for pine warblers along the eastern shore along the Atlantic Ocean. They seek out and congregate in warm pockets ("microhabitats) that are blocked from the wind or face the south.

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• Seeing irregular southern migration of rough-legged hawks, especially along coastal marshes? If so, the lemming and other rodent species may be in short supply farther north.
• Enjoy native persimmons, common along the Coastal Plain, as most of the remaining, non-over-ripe fruits are no longer mouth-puckering astringent. Persimmon, indeed, is a sweet treat to greet the hiker in need after a long day of hiking bliss.
  

• 8^th: Full moon is called the Groundhog Day Moon.
• Sky Watch: The month belongs to Venus. The evening star continues to brighten, achieving greatest brilliancy on the 21st while also standing high in fading evening twilight, an unusually dazzling combination. Saturn and Jupiter remain close and conspicuous before midnight; on the 2nd, both float alongside the gibbous Groundhog-Day Moon. Steadily fading Mercury drops back into solar glare after the first week of this month. Mars brightens as it speeds through dim Libra and enters the splendid constellation Scorpius near month's end. The winter Milky Way is now at its best, optimally seen during the dark-sky stretch from the 20th to the 25th, near the time of the new Moon.
• Who says you can't teach a swan new tricks? Watch for majestic wild populations of winter visiting tundra swans beyond the Chesapeake Bay in fields where they have adapted their feeding behavior to plentiful supplies of corn and grain.

• Observant gull watchers may spot more than ring-billed gulls, for eastern shore areas are also visited by herring, Bonaparte's, greater black-backed and, more rarely, lesser black-backed gulls.
• Spring invites itself closer to the table as American robins become more common now and by the end of the month (Migrants join brave residents that remain in the mid-Atlantic throughout the entire year.).

• 23rd: After sunset, look in the west sky where Venus is just below Jupiter.
• Seeing an owl during the day in open country? If so, you may be seeing the short-eared owl, which wears a dark facial disk that emphasizes its yellow eyes.
• Think about three current deep sleeping, dreaming mammals (yes, mammals dream, according to researchers): little brown bats, woodchucks/ground hogs, and jumping mice

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- MARCH -

• No naked-eye, bright comets will be approaching for us to see this year, nor will any be very bright with the use of telescopes.
• Sky Watch: Mars passes north of the star Antares during the first two weeks of March. Similar in brightness and color to the red planet, Antares means "rival of Mars." Venus drops lower throughout the month but is increasingly spectacular viewed through binoculars. Starting around the 20th, but optimally on the 27th, Venus is both an evening and a morning star and can be glimpsed low in the west after sunset and also in the east before sunrise. It is in inferior conjunction with the Sun on the 29th. Mercury is low and difficult to see before dawn, but the Moon has an eye-catching meeting with Jupiter and Saturn on the 1st and again on the 29th. The vernal equinox occurs at 8:31 a.m. EST on the 20th.
• Watch (and listen) for returning male red wing blackbirds, which return on migration earlier to begin establishing breeding territories than the later arriving females
• Each year Maryland's first osprey (formerly called "Fishhawk" because it dives into the water for the fish it eats) is found in the first few days of March, often at Point Lookout State Park in St. Mary's County, or near Ocean City. If you keep your eyes open where you live, maybe you'll be the first to spot one this year! (Nature Note courtesy of Charlie Muise.)

• 9^th: Full moon is called the Sap Moon, Crow Moon or Lenten Moon.
• Do you wish to see rare, accidental or early bird migrants? Listen to the 24-hour recording "Voice of the Naturalist," (301/652-1088) coordinated by the Audubon Naturalist Society (301/652-9188).
• Did you know that a new sunspot cycle began in 1996? During the 11-year cycle, the brightness of the Sun may vary by 4%. The northern and southern lights are more prominent during times of the greatest sunspot activity.

• 20^th: Spring or vernal equinox begins at 2:35 pm Eastern Standard Time, the time when the Sun, "appearing" to travel along the ecliptic, reaches the point where it crosses the equator into the northern celestial hemisphere.
• Day and night are exactly 12 hours each at the equator on this day.
• Visit wet meadows and fields bordering forests at twilight to witness the mating sky "dance" ritual of the American woodcocks, some of which have already begun laying their eggs.
  

• Proud-parent area raptors currently tending eggs include some red shouldered hawks, red-tailed hawks, American kestrels and the more elusive and rare bald eagle.
• 26^th: Because this is the last Sunday in March, people in Britain change their clocks one hour forward from Standard Time to Summer Time. This same change happens next Sunday in the United States.

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• 7^th: Full moon is called the Grass Moon or Egg Moon.
• Although some yellow-rumped warblers remain in our mid-Atlantic area throughout the winter, other populations of this species begin returning now on their spring migration. They and Louisiana warblers (often frequenting streams and rivers) are often two of the earliest returning migrants you’re likely to see, in addition to migrating pine warblers that join our winter residents.
• By now, the "tinkling" chorus of spring peeper frogs have joined the refrain of "quacking" wood frogs as two of the earliest singing frogs.
• Sky watch: Jupiter and Saturn enjoy their final month of dual visibility. Both planets are now descending lower in the western sky at nightfall, and on the 25th and 26th, the pair hovers near the young crescent Moon. Mars, still steadily brightening, crosses into the constellation Sagittarius and starts rising in the southeast soon after midnight. Venus emerges in the predawn east to become a not-very-prominent apparition as a morning star for the remainder of the year. Mercury finishes its own poor performance as a morning star and will be missed by no one. Daylight Saving Time begins at 2:00 a.m. on the 1st.

• Passerine migrant arrivals in Maryland this week (some of which will breed here) may include brown thrashers and eastern phoebes, in addition to the insect-eating swallows (barn, tree, N. rough-winged and purple martin).
• Roadside mammal sightings may seem more common for a good reason: Mothers are giving birth to babies, including those born to opossums. As the only pouched mammal in the USA, opossums often give birth to 14 embryos that have large hands to quickly crawl and attach to their mother's 13 teats. Of course, this means the oversupply of babies for available teats makes opossums (not people) as one of the first players of "musical chairs" millions of years prior to the first appearance of modern humans.

• Is it worth putting up hummingbird feeders this early? Yes, perhaps, as the earliest arriving ruby-throated hummingbird seen in spring in Maryland is March 27, with the earliest nester being May 14th.
• Newborn raccoons born this time of year may number 2-7 in a litter. Do they really wash their food? Sometimes, in order to improve their sense of touch in their toes and to tell edible objects from non-edible items.

• Among the returning migrant warblers you might expect to see this week include yellow, northern parula, black-throated blue, black-throated green, pine (often seen much earlier than this week, including residents that overwinter), black-and-white, and common yellowthroat warblers.
• Which is the only cavity-nesting warbler we see this far north? Currently returning prothonotary warblers, which breed in wooded swamps, bottomland forests and river corridors throughout the mid-Atlantic and as far south as Florida. The earliest returning prothonotary warbler in Maryland on record is March 31st, with the earliest nester being May 1st.

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• Given normal spring weather conditions, the annual warbler migration is the amazing, center stage, "Spectacle of the Week" worth checking out in nearby woodlands and other habitats. In other words, it’s now "Prime Time" viewing, as the first week of May can often be an excellent time to view yellow-rumped (Myrtle) warblers, black-throated green warblers, Louisiana waterthrushes, American redstarts, common yellowthroats, in addition to many other migrant warblers/neotropical birds.
• (Consult the "Field List of the Birds of Maryland" for general migrating arrival times/ranges/nesting times. It is available from the Maryland Ornithological Society, 800/823-0050.)
• Watch for white-spotted, young deer that were recently born singly or with a twin. Mother deer may soon lead young on home range treks that circle throughout a square mile.
• Place four- to six-inch lengths of colored string around your yard to attract orioles looking for nesting material.
• Sky watch: Venus achieves its greatest brilliancy as a morning star on the 4th, a dazzling low-elevation beacon in the eastern sky before dawn. The cloudy inner planet meets the crescent Moon on the 19th. Saturn vanishes into solar glare. Jupiter falls closer to the western horizon each evening at dusk and meets Mercury on the 15th and 16th. Mercury is especially bright during the first half of the month and now achieves its highest-in-the-sky evening appearance of the year. It is near the young crescent Moon on the 24th. Mars brightens dramatically to become an eye-catching "star" rising in the southeast by 11:00 p.m. EDT and remaining in the south throughout the night.
• 7^th: Full moon called the Planting Moon or Milk Moon.

• What’s one technique that may attract more birds to your yard? Try installing a backyard in-ground pond or above-ground water source. A perpetual spray or fountain that recycles water can attract birds drawn in by the sound of running water, especially passerines such as chickadees, tufted titmouse, goldfinches and many others.
• Squirrels and chipmunks are just two mammals that may be attracted to a backyard water source, while urban dwellers may compensate for lack of outdoor space by clamping feeders containing food onto windows and erecting hummingbird feeders in "tight," smaller yards.

• Often heard more often, than easily spotted, watch for late arriving vireos, such as the white-eyed, blue-headed, yellow-throated, warbling and, rarely, Philadelphia. The more common red-eyed vireo is now heard singing in woodlands or their borders, sometimes repeating its song hundreds of times per hour at midday throughout Maryland/Virginia and other East/Midwest hardwood settings.
• What is the strange scent in the air along roadsides? Perhaps you're smelling night-active skunks that range over 10 acres and uses abandoned burrows of other animals. Skunks sometimes also dig their own burrow or use protected cavities underneath buildings. Some naturalists suggest mothballs work to repel skunks from habitually entering a shelter under, for example, a house or patio.

• Easy-to-spot constellations include Bootes, the Herdsman, which is best found if one of its brightest stars, the brilliant Arcturus, is found due south of the zenith (straight overhead). Arcturus is easily spotted if you follow down the arc formed by the handle of the Big Dipper. The only other bright objects in the sky that approach Arcturus' bright twinkle would be the planets Jupiter or Venus.
• By now, waterfowl-watching fans may have spotted sandpipers, willets and both greater and lesser yellowlegs in various wetlands and upland areas, especially in dredge spoil impoundments.
• Changing sweet mixtures regularly every 2-3 days in hummingbird feeders becomes important as days grow warmer. Washing the feeder in hot water is also an important preventive measure to care for the health of hummers. A four to five parts water to one part sugar combination usually works best, though you may experiment (fun!) to judge which mixture is most often visited by hummingbirds. Bee and ant guards are a good idea to prevent potential problems. If you're hanging more than one feeder, the best strategy (if possible) is to space them apart by at least 30-40 feet. This action may help prevent the guarding of two feeders by an overaggressive male hummer that defends the territory in between both feeders.
• You might think the ruby-throated hummingbird is the only species easterners see, correct? This assumption is usually true, but it is not unheard of to see rufous hummingbirds. In recent years, sightings have increased, especially during the winter.

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• 5^th: Full moon called the Rose Moon, Flower Moon or Strawberry Moon.
• Sky Watch: Jupiter is lost behind the Sun throughout June, while Saturn remains low and obscure in morning twilight. The month belongs to Mars and Venus, occupying opposite sides of the heavens. Venus, the dazzling morning star, achieves maximum Sun-separation on the 8th but is not high. Mars is brilliant as it sits close to the bright waning Moon on the 6th, reaches opposition with the Sun on the 13th, and achieves its closest approach to Earth since 1988 on the 21st. The summer solstice occurs on the 21st, at 3:38 a.m. EDT. With the Sun now at its annual high point, Mars's opposition means that it lurks in the zodiac's lowest zone. Thick horizon air will make the brilliant planet look red.
• Pop bird quiz: What’s one common bird in our area that is still a nomad, on-the-wing and still not nesting? Most goldfinches are late nesters, perhaps because so many wait for the nesting material provided by the downy remains of blooming thistles.
• Sometimes tardy migrating warblers can be spotted as late as now, such as the Connecticut and mourning warblers, both of which are uncommon to see in the Mid-Atlantic region.

• Do you care about the increasing problem of light pollution that makes it more difficult to clearly spot celestial objects? If so, you might consider joining the International Dark-Sky Association. Call 520/293-3198 for more information or look at its Web site: http://www.darksky.org
• Will you still see young deer this late in the spring? Yes, it seems the range of births for deer extends into late June if not beyond. I’ve seen white-spotted fawns well into July in our area, the burgeoning population a result of plentiful forage and ideal habitat (forests, forest borders, meadows, suburban gardens, farmers’ fields).

• 21st: Summer solstice; summer begins at 3:38 a.m. EDT, longest day of the year for northern hemisphere residents; shortest day light length for southern hemisphere dwellers.
• 21^st: Total eclipse of the Sun, June 21. This eclipse will not be visible in the United States or Canada.
• Yellow-billed cuckoos, more common than black-billed ones, are most likely to be heard and seen this time of year. Their three- to five-second rolling, even-rhythmic call is often heard in forested settings, occasionally along woodland borders.

• 23^rd: St. John’s Eve tonight used to be celebrated moreso in the past in England when bonfires would be set to glow throughout the long and late-striking twilight hours and into the night.
• By now, northward migration of passerines has ended. Therefore, it’s a good idea to head to the hills (i.e., western Maryland or other foothill and mountainous areas along the Appalachian range) if you want to hear and see more species of breeding warblers than are present in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont areas of the mid-Atlantic.
• Do you want to attract mammals into view in your backyard? One fun technique for doing so is to place a Q-tip (that has been dipped into musk oil or other animal-attracting oil potion) into the ground. Place a small circle of sand under the Q-tip so that you can see the tracks of the animals you attract. (You can order a large variety of animal attractant oil and vocal call devices from M & M Fur Co., 1-800-658-5554.)

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• 5^th: Full moon is called the Thunder Moon or Hay Moon.
• 5^th: Partial eclipse of the Moon, July 5. This eclipse will be visible only in Hawaii and the Aleutian Islands.
• Sky watch: Earth is at aphelion (farthest from the Sun) on the 4th. Although brilliant Mars is visible all night in the southerly constellation Ophiuchus, Venus and Mercury, joined by Saturn and Jupiter, have shifted entirely to the eastern predawn sky. The ringed world stubbornly remains in Taurus, but Jupiter moves into Gemini, its new home for the rest of the year. Look for beautiful gatherings in the middle of morning twilight: Dazzling Venus meets dimmer Saturn and the orange star Aldebaran from the 11th to the 15th, with the crescent Moon joining them on the 17th; lower in the east during this same five-day period, Jupiter and Mercury hover side by side, joined by the Moon on the 19th.
• Be on the lookout for south migrating shorebirds as they begin their early treks back to wintering grounds from northern breeding areas. Likely first candidates to spot along the eastern shore in Delaware and nearby are sandpipers (spotted, solitary, least), short-billed dowitchers, whimbrels, and both greater and lesser yellowlegs.

• Do some warblers actually begin migrating south already? Yes, a few may start exiting our area by mid-July and soon after. Our earliest departing warblers include the prothonotary, worm-eating and Louisiana waterthrush.
• Tree squirrels may be having their second "hatch" of babies by now. Using tree cavities as birthing sites, the adults occasionally move the babies from one locale to another in the canopy.

• How many different kinds of woodpeckers can you see in the mid-Atlantic region?
• Now, six are common: downy, hairy, red-bellied, northern flicker, pileated and red-headed. Two more, the yellow-bellied sapsucker and red-cockaded, are less common, summer visitors in the Piedmont/Coastal Plain areas of the mid-Atlantic (Especially rare in the mid-Atlantic area is the more-southern USA red-cockaded.).

• South migrating terns to watch for at mid-Atlantic latitudes (especially along the Eastern Shore) include Forster’s terns and caspian terns, with an occasional royal tern a lucky sighting.

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• 4^th: The full moon is called the Green Corn Moon or Grain Moon.
• Sky watch: Look for increasing numbers of "shooting stars" from the 6th through the 12th, even though the Perseid meteors of the 11th to the 13th could be ruined by a waning gibbous Moon. Meanwhile, eye-catching conjunctions spangle the predawn heavens. Venus and Jupiter, the night's two brightest "stars," pass just a degree apart on the 5th and 6th. The Moon skims past Saturn on the 14th, Jupiter on the 15th, and Venus on the 16th. Uranus, in Capricornus, is at opposition on the 15th. At magnitude 6.0, the giant green world is faintly visible to the naked eye under moonless conditions, which prevail around the 18th. Mars, although fading from its June glory, remains bright in the south.
• Southern flying squirrels are more common in mid-Atlantic upland Piedmont forests than most people think. Favorable habitat with large trees and cavities for nesting may average nearly two flying squirrels to an acre. Winter concentrations may have 20 or 30 individuals living together in one or two tree cavities, whereas surrounding acres are completely devoid of these mammals.
• American toads are now commonly seen throughout upland areas away from their waterway breeding grounds.

• 8^th-15^th is the peak of the Perseid meteor showers. This well-known meteor shower, generated by Comet Swift-Tuttle, is predicted to be most prominent during the morning hours of the 12th, despite a last-quarter Moon that will create partial glare.
• Baby ruby-throated hummingbirds in the Midwest and East are now on the wing and visiting backyard feeders filled with sugar nectar. Watch closely to see if one or more males fend off and chase away other hummingbirds from feeders. Ask yourself while observing: Does the male defend one or more feeders? All day or only part of the day? Your conclusions would be interesting for me to hear. Feel free to send me a note by clicking on my email address (edelstein@earthlink.net) on the main menu of this page.
  (Note: By the month’s end and into September, some feeders are frequented only by the first-year hummers after the territorial males leave.)

• Most long-distance avian migrants fly at night. Feeding during the day replenishes their energy. Traveling for long distances over unsuitable habitats and water is not uncommon. Perhaps the most Herculean southerly migration flight is performed by the blackpoll warbler whose eastern populations, in part, are known to travel nonstop some 2,150 miles over the Atlantic ocean from New England and eastern Canada to northern South America. This trip may take the warblers 72-90 hours in flight time, during which they burn .08 grams per hour!

• By now, even more species of warblers have begun migrating south to wintering grounds (see July 9-16). Some of the earliest to leave northern breeding areas include yellow, prothonotary, magnolia, cape may, yellow-throated, blackburnian, cerulean, black and white, and Louisiana waterthrush (which may be the earliest to depart, though many years also include early-migrating and departing yellow and Tennessee warblers).

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• 2nd: The full moon is called the Fruit Moon.
• Sky Watch: Striking late-summer conjunctions continue, as the Moon's tilted path keeps carrying it within a single degree of a series of planets. It closely meets Saturn (now rising before midnight) on the 10th, skims past Jupiter on the 12th, and passes 3 degrees north of Venus on the 15th. Venus, losing some of its earlier luster, stands just half a degree from Leo's blue star, Regulus, on the 20th. Autumn begins with the equinox on the 22nd, at 7:04 p.m. EDT, marking the Sun's transit of Earth's equator. Mars, crossing back into Sagittarius, keeps fading as Earth pulls ahead, leaving the red planet behind in the dust (or, more accurately, directly in front of the dusty center of our galaxy).
• Watch for the pulsing light show of fireflies in meadows, fields and forest borders. The aerial flights of light are made by male fireflies only. Females may respond in kind from their perches on the ground. Males checkout the light pattern emitted of females by flying closer, then mating if the flashing pattern is acceptable. If you see a different pattern of flashing light from a firefly, it may be another species. You can attempt to distinguish species from one another by noticing the number, duration and time lapse between flashes.

• 13^th: "Friday the 13^th" (like this year) is considered unlucky, right? But did you know it actually occurs at least once a year, sometimes twice, and more rarely three times a year. Strangely, Friday falls on the 13^th day of the month more often than any other day occurs on the same day of the month.
• Do you wish to see rare, accidental or early bird migrants? Listen to the 24-hour recording "Voice of the Naturalist," (301/652-1088) coordinated by the Audubon Naturalist Society (301/652-9188).
• Besides monarchs, who are the other migrating butterflies? Two of them are the painted lady and red admiral. High ridges are especially good vantage points to spot monarchs moving south. Butterfly watchers in the East and Midwest will see monarchs on their trips south to where they will remain throughout the winter in central Mexico. Western populations of migrating monarchs often congregate together in huge colonies along the central California coast.

• Now is the time throughout the Midwest and East to notice "staging" behavior of some birds. Swallows and nighthawks, for example, congregate in large groups on telephone lines and in trees before migrating south together en masse.
• 22^nd: Autumn begins because the Sun, appearing to travel along the ecliptic, reaches the point where it crosses the equator into the southern celestial hemisphere.

• Are you still hearing crickets? Even though the first frost may have invaded your area. Crickets survive well into autumn because their body fluids contain an "anti-freeze" agent called glycogen. Its composition as an animal starch includes glucose molecules that retard the inevitable freezing of a cricket’s body fluids until more severe and consecutive nights of frigid weather arrive.
• Where do hummingbirds go for the winter? Most species depart from the United States, though the Anna’s hummingbird remains in California throughout the winter and may begin courtship again by this December in some parts of its range. Ruby-throated hummingbirds east of the Mississippi River begin migrating south around now through October. Many spend the winter in southern Mexico, though a few live on Florida Key islands and in Cuba (95 miles from Key West).

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• 2nd: Full moon is called the Harvest Moon.
• Sky Watch: Venus and Mercury, low in the east in predawn twilight, are on display in an unusually long-lasting meeting from October 28 to November 8. Mars, well up at dusk, keeps fading as it crosses into Capricornus in late October. Jupiter and Saturn both rise before midnight; Jupiter, now in Gemini, is higher in our sky than it has been since 1990. This month, the Milky Way is at its best at nightfall during the relatively moonless period from the 9th to the 17th. The galaxy's center is marked by a glow in Sagittarius just to the right of where Mars presently hovers. The mediocre Orionid meteors peak on the 22nd after the crescent Moon sets. Daylight Saving Time ends at 2:00 a.m. on the 28th.
• When should you stop feeding hummingbirds sugar water nectar? The answer is not clear. One group of experts believe remaining feeders imperil hummingbirds because they allow foraging to occur later than would be accommodated with a normal bloom of wildflowers. Awakening to an early freeze may be difficult for remaining hummingbirds to survive, argue these experts. Others believe it is okay for nectar feeders to remain well into autumn. Hummingbirds are uninfluenced by food source availability and migrate when prompted by an "inner clock," according to these people.It’s well known that the arctic tern makes the longest migration (22,000 miles roundtrip) of any bird. Less publicized is how far our familiar barn swallow travels. Look for them now moving south in groups during the day as they proceed on the southern portion of their roundtrip migration that may amount to as high as 7,000 miles.

• Although hawks and eagles begin migration through Mid-Atlantic states before this week, now is an ideal period to see them if you visit a prominent ridge or mountain top to view. Two of the best vistas on separate coasts are both called Hawk Hill. The West Coast’s Hawk Hill (operated by the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory) is near Sausalito, California just north of San Francisco overlooking San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. Hawk Hill Mountain in central Pennsylvania is another popular vista to observe more than a dozen migrating raptors, the most common raptorial passersby being American kestrels, red-tailed, sharp-shinned and Cooper’s hawks.
• Prominent, late-migrating warblers that you may still spot in Mid-Atlantic states include the black-throated green, blackpoll, yellow-rumped and palm (with portions of populations in the last two species remaining throughout the winter, especially in coastal habitats).

• Pretend you’re hiking in the Midwest or East around this time of year and you see tadpole frogs. Which species are you most likely observing? Probably bull or green frogs, as most species of frogs do not overwinter as tadpoles. The majority of frogs are able to transform themselves from egg to tadpole to adult by the end of summer.
• In mid-Atlantic states, this is the time to notice an influx of returning dark-eyed juncos and savannah, white-crowned and white-throated sparrows. The latter appear to be most abundant throughout the winter in many habitats, often heard even on cold days to sing a plaintive phrase that sounds like "Sam Peabody-Peabody-Peabody........." Fox sparrows in abundance soon follow, a large pulse often arriving in mid-November.

• The gorgeous intensity of the tree’s fall colors are in part affected by the amount of moisture that fell during the summer. A dry summer with below normal rainfall tends to mute the golden and red colors so that the leaves on many trees are more uniformly brown. My own experience in the mid-Atlantic suggests the black gum (Nyssa silvatica) is the prettiest in displaying bright rainbow colors, as are regions north and at higher elevations where sugar maples grow.

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• 1st: Full moon is called the Frosty or Beaver Moon (perhaps to account for beavers that are preparing their lodges for the oncoming of winter’s inclement weather).
• Sky Watch: The Moon passes close to Jupiter on the 6th. Mercury displays its best morning-star appearance of the year as it hovers next to Venus during the first week of November. Saturn now rises at nightfall, and much brighter Jupiter rises by 10:00 p.m. EST, dominating the heavens for the remainder of the night. The Leonid meteors will keep observers awake on the night of the 17th-18th. Mars, the only bright "star" low in the south at nightfall, offers the year's best chance to locate dim Uranus when it floats just below the seventh planet on the 26th. A Moon-Saturn conjunction occurs on the 30^th
• Some mammal hibernators are beginning their deep sleep for the winter. Do you know which ones hibernate in the Midwest and East? Black bears, which are NOT true hibernators because they occasionally may astir during the winter, are merely prolonged sleepers whose body temperatures and heartbeat plummet. True hibernators include little brown bats, woodchucks, thirteen-lined ground squirrels and some jumping mice.

• While walking in an Eastern or Midwestern forest, look in the understory for our latest flowering plant—witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana), a shrub that may continue blooming into December. Each small flower exhibits four bright yellow petals that unfurl like ribbons, eventually maturing into a tight capsule of seeds. Under pressure that eventually releases, the seeds shoot out as projectiles to colonize new areas or to serve as ground food for squirrels and ruffed grouse.

• 17^th-18^th: Leonid Meteors. Two experts, who successfully predicted 1999's Leonid storm, David Asher and Robert McNaught, foresee good storm prospects for 2001 and 2002. Others suggest that in 2001, as Earth passes very close to the dust ejected from Comet Tempel-Tuttle in 1866, there may be at least two very intense activity peaks on November 18th between 10:00 and 18:00 Universal Time. As the Moon will be only 3 days old, 2001 may be a very good year for viewing Leonids.
• Among all of deciduous oaks, the red oak is the known for retaining its leaves throughout the winter. The shadow cast from a skeletal group of red oaks still wearing their leaves is a strange scene to stumble upon in the winter landscape. The rest of the landscape may be filled with barren trees that developed a corky layer (abscission zone) in their leaf stem bases at completion of summer growth. This layer grows thick enough to eventually prevent further passage of fluids, thereby causing the leaves to die and drift to the ground.
• Where do snakes hang out during the winter? Many retreat to underground dens where they coil en masse together to remain warm. In northern areas, rattlesnakes are particularly known for congregating into large groups (of up to 250 or more). Most live in dens on slopes protected from northern winds that have orientations toward the low winter sun in the south. Sometimes you can see rattlesnakes lie near their den entrances on the last warm days of autumn or on the initial warm days of spring.

• Coax deer into view throughout the upcoming winter by placing a salt lick block at the edge of woods.
• Some brave warblers survive hang out throughout the winter in regions you might not expect. Unlike warblers that have vacated North America for points farther south, yellow-rumped warblers are able to survive inclement winter weather while living in mid-Atlantic states because they are able to digest wax myrtle, juniper and, even, poison ivy berries. These same areas may also host small populations of pine and palm warblers throughout the winter in the mid-Atlantic, in addition to occasional yellow-breasted chats and common yellowthroat warblers.

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• Sky Watch: Saturn, close to the nearly full Moon as December opens (and again on the 27th), reaches opposition on the 3rd, rising at sunset. At magnitude -0.4, it is outshone only by the Dog Star, Sirius, and dazzling Jupiter. With Mars fading and sinking lower in the southwest, and Mercury and Venus low and unimpressive, Jupiter and Saturn are the year-end celebrities. Look for the splendid Geminid meteors on the 13th and 14th. A partial solar eclipse can be seen from the central United States and Canada on the 14th. The winter solstice occurs on the 21st, at 2:21 p.m. EST. Jupiter is closest to Earth on the 30th and brightest on New Year's Eve, rising brilliantly in the northeast at nightfall.
• Now’s the time to make sure you have a waterproof, shock-proof heater to place in a backyard water pan or birdbath so that when overnight temperatures dip below freezing the birds still have a water source for drinking and bathing.
• It’s not always well known that Mid-Atlantic states can be excellent refuges throughout the winter for spotting waterfowl. Besides ducks, the Chesapeake Bay and ice-free inland lakes often host loons, grebes, tundra swans, snow geese, Ross’ geese and, of course, the ubiquitous Canada geese.

• You might assume that thrushes (such as American robins) would migrate south away from inclement weather in the Mid-Atlantic states. Indeed, some do, but many other robins remain with their first-cousin family member, the hermit thrush. Evidently, enough berries persist to sustain these birds until new food sources appear in the spring.
• Seeing an abundance of aquatic insects might not seem normal for this time of year, correct? Not entirely. Many kinds of aquatic insects are actually abundant in freshwater streams throughout the winter, some (such as stoneflies) even blooming and flying in winter’s landscape. Pick up small rocks within shallow creeks and look on their backsides. You may see the diverse homes of caddisfly larva, varying materials used by each species in a shelter bound together from a caddisfly’s own secretions.

• Not all frogs hibernate in the soft mud on the bottom of ponds and streams. In the Midwest and East, the wood frog hibernates just below rocks and logs in the forest. On unusually warm evenings (especially when rain falls) this month or next, you may hear them temporarily singing along with spring peepers. The onset of frigid weather again causes them to burrow beneath the surface.
• Simplifying the best and most efficient ways to feed backyard birds throughout the winter is not easy. However, if you were forced to choose two of the best foods to feed birds, the best choices are black sunflower seeds and niger thistle. Both have been proven over the years to attract a more diverse group of winter avian visitors than other food options, such as millet, cracked corn and striped sunflower seeds.
• Suet (either chicken or beef) feeders are also usually successful in attracting chickadees, nuthatches and various woodpeckers.

• Non-seasonal movements of birds may begin occurring around now through the rest of winter, depending on the supply of food in a bird’s normal range. Without adequate mast crops of spruce and pine cones, some finch family members (red and white-winged crossbills, pine grosbeaks, evening grosbeaks, pine siskins, common redpolls) may appear farther south than in years when normal tree seed harvests are present. Detecting these "irruptive" movements to the south is sometimes easier if your backyard hosts feeders containing niger thistle seed, a favorite substitute feed source for many of these wayward winter species.
• Courting great-horned owls soon begin laying their eggs, with babies hatching by January throughout much of this bird’s vast North American range. Now is the best time to attract them closer to where you stand and listen after performing a mimicking owl vocalization (or using a recording of an eastern screech owl, for example, to attract curious larger owls).
• 30^th: Full moon is called the Moon Before Yule (i.e., Yule is Christmas and this year the full moon precedes it) or the Long Night Moon (i.e., because the path of this month’s full moon is high overhead compared to the low trajectory seen in a summer’s full moon).

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